murder 1 of 2

murder

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verb

Synonym Chooser

How is the word murder distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of murder are assassinate, dispatch, execute, kill, and slay. While all these words mean "to deprive of life," murder specifically implies stealth and motive and premeditation and therefore full moral responsibility.

convicted of murdering a rival

When could assassinate be used to replace murder?

Although the words assassinate and murder have much in common, assassinate applies to deliberate killing openly or secretly often for political motives.

terrorists assassinated the Senator

When might dispatch be a better fit than murder?

The words dispatch and murder can be used in similar contexts, but dispatch stresses quickness and directness in putting to death.

dispatched the sentry with one bullet

Where would execute be a reasonable alternative to murder?

In some situations, the words execute and murder are roughly equivalent. However, execute stresses putting to death as a legal penalty.

executed by lethal gas

When would kill be a good substitute for murder?

While in some cases nearly identical to murder, kill merely states the fact of death caused by an agency in any manner.

killed in an accident
frost killed the plants

When is it sensible to use slay instead of murder?

While the synonyms slay and murder are close in meaning, slay is a chiefly literary term implying deliberateness and violence but not necessarily motive.

slew thousands of the Philistines

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of murder
Noun
The recent murder of the United Healthcare CEO revealed disturbing details about AI’s role in the company’s insurance claim denials. Ann Kowal Smith, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025 In February, the country recorded 47 murders, its lowest monthly homicide tally in 25 years, according to the government. Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 27 Mar. 2025
Verb
The original Friday the 13th film, which followed a group of counselors being murdered at a summer camp, was released in 1980 and become a box-office hit, spawning myriad slasher copycats that flooded theaters in the ’80s and beyond. Nick Caruso, TVLine, 24 Mar. 2025 Kay Flock was arrested in December 2021 and charged with murdering a 24-year-old man named Hwascar Hernandez. Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork, 24 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for murder
Recent Examples of Synonyms for murder
Noun
  • Some important breaking news: Britain’s long ninja-nal nightmare is finally over.
    Jeffrey Blehar, National Review, 28 Mar. 2025
  • Migraine Migraine and sleep abnormalities, such as sleepwalking, teeth-grinding, and nightmares, often go hand in hand.
    Ann Pietrangelo, Verywell Health, 28 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • Bukele said El Salvador had 1.9 homicides per 100,000 people, which puts the country below what any Latin American country had reported in 2023, according to the AP.
    Jonathan Limehouse, USA Today, 27 Mar. 2025
  • Kate has conducted deep-dive investigations into transgender prison abuse and homicides for NBC News.
    Kate Sosin, Them., 27 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • The expiration date marks the day the Prime Minister of Granada, Maurice Bishop, was assassinated by a firing squad, which was followed by a U.S. military invasion.
    R. Daniel Foster, Forbes.com, 26 Mar. 2025
  • One 1964 document showed that two intelligence assets discussed potentially assassinating Castro under the administration of President Lyndon Johnson.
    David Brennan, ABC News, 19 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Gonzaga did have a shot to tie on its final possession, but Khalif Battle fumbled a handoff and had his desperation 3-pointer blocked by Ja’Vier Francis.
    CJ Moore, The Athletic, 23 Mar. 2025
  • After Hovland calmly made a bogey on the last to secure the win, PGA Tour fans wasted no time grilling Thomas for fumbling a golden opportunity.
    Kevin Sabet, Newsweek, 23 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • By Sunday afternoon, President Bukele’s office had released video clips believed to be images of migrants being escorted off a plane and taken to a prison where incarcerated people are reportedly subjected to torture and beatings.
    Troy Aidan Sambajon, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Mar. 2025
  • It’s apparently been rigged into an impenetrable torture device on wheels.
    Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • The brothers are both serving life sentences without the possibility of parole for the 1989 shotgun slayings of Jose and Kitty Menendez at the family’s mansion in Beverly Hills.
    David Matthews, New York Daily News, 20 Mar. 2025
  • During the trial, Varner alleged Brown stabbed a man to death in an unrelated 2022 East Chicago drug house slaying.
    Meredith Colias-Pete, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • That film’s prescient plot caught a lot of folks’ attention in December, when real-life United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson was slain on a New York City sidewalk, allegedly by 26-year-old Jigsaw wannabe Luigi Mangione.
    Benjamin Svetkey and Julian Sancton, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Mar. 2025
  • The number of people slain so far in 2025: 74. Chicago homicides, by year Data for 2025 is updated through March 12, 2025.
    Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • At night, after the final whistle was blown, thousands of jubilant fans poured into the streets, heading toward the city’s bars to continue the debauchery, sometimes till dawn.
    Andrew McNicol, CNN, 22 Mar. 2025
  • This flow pattern blows warm air northward toward the poles east of lows and cool air southward toward the equator west of lows.
    Chris Nowotarski, The Conversation, 20 Mar. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Murder.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/murder. Accessed 5 Apr. 2025.

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